Tom Hicks and
George Gillett were today accused of seeking to retain control of Liverpool from ‘beyond the grave’.

Scathing: Lord Grabiner (PA)

At a High Court hearing in London the American co-owners were given until 4pm tomorrow to withdraw their injunction preventing the sale of the club after Mr Justice Floyd ruled the Texas court which granted their injunction had no UK jurisdiction.

David Chivers QC – who told the judge his clients, New England Sports Ventures (NESV), already considered themselves the new owners – asked the judge for a speedy serving of his orders on Hicks and Gillett so the deal with NESV can be completed.

He said if the deal was not completed tomorrow, then Hicks and Gillett had succeeded in stopping the sale of Liverpool before repayment of the debt to the Royal Bank of Scotland became due.

Chivers described Hicks and Gillett as ‘the owners from beyond the grave seeking to exercise with their dead hand a continuing grip on this company.’

Earlier, Liverpool’s QC Lord Grabiner said the legal actions brought in Dallas were ‘abusive, vexatious and oppressive’. He said claims made to the Texas court suggesting a conspiracy ­involving board members and RBS were a ‘grotesque parody of the truth’.

Mr Justice Floyd, in granting an anti-suit injunction, was scathing in his remarks about the ‘unconscionable’ conduct of Hicks and Gillett, who stand to lose over £140m if the NESV deal goes ahead.

The judge said his mandatory orders were not aimed at the Texas court but Hicks and Gillett to stop them taking further action.

Earlier, rival bidder Peter Lim announced he was pulling out, angry and frustrated his £320m offer had not been considered.

‘It has become clear to me the Board is intent on selling the club to NESV to the exclusion of all other parties, regardless of the merits of their bids,’ Lim said in a statement.